Imagine

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How to Clear Abundance Blocks | Christie Marie Sheldon & Vishen Lakhiani

Lisa Nichols's Top 10 Rules For Success (@2motivate)

Zig Ziglar

PAIN - Motivational & Inspirational Video

Positive Affirmations For Living a Balanced Life by Luminita D. Saviuc

To live a balanced life is to welcome with open arms whatever life sends your way – no matter if good or bad, beautiful or ugly, knowing that it’s meant to help you cleanse yourself of yourself. It’s all meant to help you return home – to the Truth of who you are, and the Truth of who everyone else is.

To live a balanced life is to know that everything that happens in your life, it happens FOR you, not TO you.

To live a balanced life, is to be at peace with yourself and the world around you.To live a balanced life is to become aware that life is a sacred gift and that each day is meant to be lived with grace, love and thankfulness.

To live a balanced life is to be aligned with your own heart and soul and live your life from a place of Truth, Love, Joy and High Integrity. And hopefully, these positive affirmations for living a balanced life will help you achieve just that.

Enjoy 🙂

http://www.purposefairy.com/82593/positive-affirmations-living-balanced-life/

15 Things You Should Give Up To Be Happy by Luminita D. Saviuc

Here is a list of 15 things which, if you give up on them, will make your life a lot easier and much, much happier. We hold on to so many things that cause us a great deal of pain, stress and suffering – and instead of letting them all go, instead of allowing ourselves to be stress free and happy – we cling on to them. Not anymore. Starting today we will give up on all those things that no longer serve us, and we will embrace change. Ready? Here we go:

1. Give up your need to always be right

 There are so many of us who can’t stand the idea of being wrong – wanting to always be right – even at the risk of ending great relationships or causing a great deal of stress and pain, for us and for others. It’s just not worth it. Whenever you feel the ‘urgent’ need to jump into a fight over who is right and who is wrong, ask yourself this question: “Would I rather be right, or would I rather be kind?” Wayne Dyer. What difference will that make? Is your ego really that big?

2. Give up your need for control

Be willing to give up your need to always control everything that happens to you and around you – situations, events, people, etc. Whether they are loved ones, coworkers, or just strangers you meet on the street – just allow them to be. Allow everything and everyone to be just as they are and you will see how much better will that make you feel.

“By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond winning.” Lao Tzu

3. Give up on blame

 Give up on your need to blame others for what you have or don’t have, for what you feel or don’t feel. Stop giving your powers away and start taking responsibility for your life.

4. Give up your self-defeating self-talk

 Oh my. How many people are hurting themselves because of their negative, polluted and repetitive self-defeating mindset? Don’t believe everything that your mind is telling you – especially if it’s negative and self-defeating. You are better than that.
“The mind is a superb instrument if used rightly. Used wrongly, however, it becomes very destructive.” Eckhart Tolle

5. Give up your limiting beliefs

Give up your limiting beliefs about what you can or cannot do, about what is possible or impossible. From now on, you are no longer going to allow your limiting beliefs to keep you stuck in the wrong place. Spread your wings and fly!
“A belief is not an idea held by the mind, it is an idea that holds the mind” Elly Roselle

6. Give up complaining

 Give up your constant need to complain about those many, many, maaany things – people, situations, events that make you unhappy, sad and depressed. Nobody can make you unhappy, no situation can make you sad or miserable unless you allow it to. It’s not the situation that triggers those feelings in you, but how you choose to look at it. Never underestimate the power of positive thinking.

7. Give up the luxury of criticism

Give up your need to criticize things, events or people that are different than you. We are all different, yet we are all the same. We all want to be happy, we all want to love and be loved and we all want to be understood. We all want something, and something is wished by us all.

8. Give up your need to impress others

Stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not just to make others like you. It doesn’t work this way. The moment you stop trying so hard to be something that you’re not, the moment you take off all your masks, the moment you accept and embrace the real you, you will find people will be drawn to you, effortlessly.

9. Give up your resistance to change

 Change is good. Change will help you move from A to B. Change will help you make improvements in your life and also the lives of those around you. Follow your bliss, embrace change – don’t resist it.
“Follow your bliss and the universe will open doors for you where there were only walls” Joseph Campbell

10. Give up labels

 Stop labeling those things, people or events that you don’t understand as being weird or different and try opening your mind, little by little. Minds only work when open. “The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don’t know anything about.” Wayne Dyer

11. Give up on your fears

Fear is just an illusion, it doesn’t exist – you created it. It’s all in your mind. Correct the inside and the outside will fall into place.
“The only thing we have to fear, is fear itself.” Franklin D. Roosevelt

12. Give up your excuses

Send them packing and tell them they’re fired. You no longer need them. A lot of times we limit ourselves because of the many excuses we use. Instead of growing and working on improving ourselves and our lives, we get stuck, lying to ourselves, using all kind of excuses – excuses that 99.9% of the time are not even real.

13. Give up the past

I know, I know. It’s hard. Especially when the past looks so much better than the present and the future looks so frightening, but you have to take into consideration the fact that the present moment is all you have and all you will ever have. The past you are now longing for – the past that you are now dreaming about – was ignored by you when it was present. Stop deluding yourself. Be present in everything you do and enjoy life. After all life is a journey not a destination. Have a clear vision for the future, prepare yourself, but always be present in the now.

14. Give up attachment

This is a concept that, for most of us is so hard to grasp and I have to tell you that it was for me too, (it still is) but it’s not something impossible. You get better and better at with time and practice. The moment you detach yourself from all things, (and that doesn’t mean you give up your love for them – because love and attachment have nothing to do with one another,  attachment comes from a place of fear, while love… well, real love is pure, kind, and self less, where there is love there can’t be fear, and because of that, attachment and love cannot coexist) you become so peaceful, so tolerant, so kind, and so serene. You will get to a place where you will be able to understand all things without even trying. A state beyond words.

15. Give up living your life to other people’s expectations

Way too many people are living a life that is not theirs to live. They live their lives according to what others think is best for them, they live their lives according to what their parents think is best for them, to what their friends, their enemies and their teachers, their government and the media think is best for them. They ignore their inner voice, that inner calling. They are so busy with pleasing everybody, with living up to other people’s expectations, that they lose control over their lives. They forget what makes them happy, what they want, what they need….and eventually they forget about themselves.  You have one life – this one right now – you must live it, own it, and especially don’t let other people’s opinions distract you from your path.





http://www.purposefairy.com/3308/15-things-you-should-give-up-in-order-to-be-happy/

Zig Ziglar

15 Life Changing Lessons to Learn from Wayne Dyer by Luminita D. Saviuc

We are not our bodies, our possessions, or our career. Who we are is Divine Love and that is Infinite.” Dr. Wayne W. Dyer (1940-2015)
There are people in this world who can touch our hearts in really profound and meaningful ways, and that’s exactly the impact Wayne Dyer had on me.
Wayne W. Dyer, you were one of the most beautiful, humble and authentic people who ever walked on this Earth. And I learned so much from you. You taught me how to be humble, how to live in love and truth, and how to always honor who I truly am underneath it all. You taught me how to be better than I used to be and I will always be thankful for this. Thank you for sharing your love, your knowledge and your wisdom with all of us.

The world was, is, and will be a better place just because you have lived. You will be greatly missed.

1. Cooperation is healthier than competition

Work on improving your own person and be so busy doing so that you don’t have time to compare and compete with others. We are all in this together and this sense of separation will only weaken us, creating more pain and suffering.

“If you’re always in a hurry, always trying to get ahead of the other guy, or someone else’s performance is what motivates you, then that person is in control of you.” ~ Wayne Dyer

2. If you love people you don’t try to change them

When you love somebody you love them for what they are not for what you want them to be, without imposing your will and without constantly trying to change them.
“Love is the ability and willingness to allow those that you care for to be what they choose for themselves without any insistence that they satisfy you.” ~ Wayne Dyer

3. Ignorance is not bliss

Allow yourself to expand your mind a little more day by day, give up labels and you will be happier. If you constantly say NO to “strange” ideas, things, events, people, how can you expect to progress through life? Try new things, if it makes your life better, stick to it and if it doesn’t, let it go. It’s that simple.
“The highest form of ignorance is when you reject something you don’t know anything about.” ~ Wayne Dyer

4. You are not a victim of the world

When you affirm things like, You make me mad, this situation is upsetting me, I can’t believe you are treating me this way, etc., you start playing the victim game. Take responsibility for your own thoughts, your own feelings and actions and by doing so you will no longer give your power away to forces outside yourself. When something negative comes your way, you will pause and instead of reacting, you will RESPOND, to everything and everyone. You will no longer be a victim, but rather a person who is aware of his/her inner strength and power.
“How people treat you is their karma; how you react is yours.” ~ Wayne Dyer

5. You find yourself in solitude

If you are comfortable in your own skin and really love your own person, you will not be afraid to spend time alone. You will enjoy the time you spend alone as much as you do when you are surrounded by people you dearly love.
“You cannot be lonely if you like the person you’re alone with.” ~ Wayne Dyer

6. Rejection makes you stronger

If you trust and listen to your own heart and intuition, you will always know where to go and what to do with your life. No matter how many doors close in your face, you will not give up and you will allow rejection to make you stronger and better, not bitter.
“Be grateful to all those people who told you no. It’s because of them that you managed to do it all yourself.” ~Wayne Dyer

7. Self worth cannot be verified by others

If you constantly seek outside yourself for approval and validation, you will never be happy. We are all different and we all perceive things in different ways but your reputation is not something you can really control. Your reputation is not really in your hands, so stop trying to please everyone around you and start pleasing your SELF. You are the person who matters the most and if you yourself are not happy with who you are, chances are others will not be happy with you either!
“Self-worth cannot be verified by others. You are worthy because you say it is so. If you depend on others for your value it is other-worth.” ~ Wayne Dyer

8. You don’t attract what you want in your life, you attract what you are

People often think if they focus long enough on something they want, with the Law of Attraction and everything, they will get whatever they want in life, but that’s not how things work. If you purify your mind and heart, you will attract many beautiful things into your life, and abundance will not be something you will have to chase because it will chase you. On the other hand, if your mind and heart is full of negativity, negativity in all forms will show up in your life.
”If you’re obsessed with defeating the other guy and winning at all costs, then you’re guaranteed to attract the vibrational equivalent of this thinking into your life- even if you do yoga and stand on your head chanting mantras everyday.” ~ Wayne Dyer

9. There are no limits to what you can achieve – you are a no-limit person

There are no limits to what you can achieve, only those you choose to impose on yourself.
“When you argue for your limitations, all you get are your limitations.” ~ Wayne Dyer

10. “Heaven on earth” is a choice you must make, not a place you must find

Focus on the BAD and that’s all you will see and attract into your life; focus on the GOOD and that’s all you will see and attract into your life.
“Loving people live in a loving world. Hostile people live in a hostile world. Same world.” ~ Wayne Dyer

11. No need to stress over everything

Believe it or not, there is an invisible force who created the whole world, the whole Universe and this force becomes available to us the moment we stop trying to do it all by ourselves, the moment we decide to allow events to take their natural course and just go with the FLOW.
“Good morning, this is God. I will be handling all of your problems today. I will not need your help. So have a miraculous day.” ~ Wayne Dyer

12. All that you need is already within you

In this moment you have it all, right NOW and right here, there is nothing lacking. Take time to be quiet at least 5 minutes per day and in time you will discover that you do have access to HAPPINESS, PEACE, ABUNDANCE and all that is good at all times.
“You have everything you need for complete peace and total happiness right now.” ~ Wayne Dyer

13. There is no end to personal growth

Personal growth doesn’t end when you finish school. The moment you’ve stopped growing you can say that you’ve stopped living.
Individuals who use self-labels are stating, “I’m a finished product in this area, and I’m never going to be any different.” If you’re a finished product all tied up and put away, you’ve stopped growing. ~ Wayne Dyer

14. Be realistic, expect miracles

There is a great power in the Universe, the Source of it all, and this power makes itself available to you the moment you align with who you really are deep down inside, creating miracles for you and those you love.
“Once you believe in yourself and see your soul as divine and precious, you’ll automatically be converted to a being who can create miracles.” ~ Wayne Dyer

15. Follow your heart and you will be successful

This is such a powerful truth that only a few of us get to live and discover. When you get your life on purpose, when you focus on giving the best of yourself to the world, abundance will flow freely into your life and you will discover happiness you never thought could be yours.
“Doing what you love is the cornerstone of having abundance in your life.” ~ Wayne Dyer
Do you have a favorite quote, or maybe a particular lesson you have learned from Wayne Dyer? If you do, please share it with us in the comment section below.





http://www.purposefairy.com/6777/15-life-changing-lessons-to-learn-from-wayne-dyer/

Ray Bradbury

This is me :-)

DO WHAT IS HARD - The best Motivational Video and Speeches Compilation 2...

8 Ways to Be More Productive With the Help of Meditation by Szymon Pelechowicz

What would you give for more time in your life?

The ability to do more in less time has always been a fundamental human desire. Because of that, it can seem counterintuitive to develop a meditation practice.

You already have trouble making time to sort the laundry, make dinner and exercise. And you think you should make time to meditate?

Bear with us as we explain why this makes sense.

Here are 8 ways in which meditation can actually make you more productive and also improve the quality of your life.

1. Meditation Improves Your Focus and Memory

You may think that studying, learning and working can all help keep your brain working optimally throughout your life. However, sometimes our brain grows when we’re not bombarding it.

Experts say that technology may be harming our attention and capacity to store information.

Meditation can help with that.

One study looked at test scores earned over time by participants who took a mindfulness and meditation class versus participants who took a nutrition class. The researchers found that the group that learned how to meditate showed improvements in scores on several types of tests.

Meditation alters the physical structure of the brain. The size of the blood vessels in the brain increases and more blood is transported to the brain. The cerebral cortex also thickens.

2. Meditation Helps You Live Longer

With more years in your life, you can be more productive, right?

Meditation can add years to your life. A University of Pennsylvania study found that repeating a mantra creates vibrations that disconnect the mind from the body. This allows the body to become more relaxed and evenly regulated.

Try this guided meditation to elevate your vibration.

People who meditate have also been found to have more telomerase than those who don’t. Telomerase is an enzyme that keeps chromosomes from deteriorating, which is one cause of aging. When your DNA is protected, the rate at which you age slows down.

People with higher telomerase levels also tend to have better psychological wellbeing. When you’re balanced psychologically, you’re less stressed. Research has consistently shown that stress can be a factor in health problems like heart disease, obesity, and stroke.

3. Meditation Gives You a Break That Helps You Work Less

You may be thinking, “What? Working less isn’t increasing my productivity.”

Many people don’t take the time to meditate simply because they feel more productive when they’re working hard. However, leisure time researchers say that multitasking and working longer hours don’t necessarily indicate that you’re getting more done.

In fact, one of the downfalls of working all the time is that you don’t achieve more than someone who works in a more focused mindful manner. You also don’t get to take advantage of leisure time, because you feel like you’re always working.

Taking time out of your busy day to meditate can help you get all of your work done in a more efficient manner, leaving you with more time to enjoy life too.

4. Meditation Organizes Your Mind

We often run through life without stopping to organize our thoughts. When our minds become filled with so much information, we can feel confused, overwhelmed or foggy. This doesn’t help us with our productivity.

Just like your computer works more efficiently after you defragment it, so do you. Meditation allows you to organize the information in your brain, creating more space for learning and processing information.

5. Meditation Keeps You From Procrastinating

Be honest; how much time do you spend scrolling through social media? You tell yourself that you’re just hopping on to check one thing, and you spend the next hour blindly scrolling. This type of procrastination takes a toll on your productivity.

Instead of doing those activities that suck away your time, what if you meditated? You would probably spend less time meditating than you do wasting time in other ways. Also, you would become more aware of the time that you do have and the ways in which you can realistically spend it.

6. Meditation Encourages “Right Thought”

The idea of right thought comes from the Buddhist principle that meditation creates clear intentions. This allows you to see your path and move through it more clearly, preventing you from wasting time on activities or even thought processes that are unproductive.

7. Meditation Teaches You To Push On Through

Meditating isn’t always easy. It can be challenging to rid yourself of the fluster of thoughts that crowd your brain at any given moment. Developing a consistent meditation practice takes patience and perseverance.

Over time, however, you end up learning how to breathe through the difficult situation. You understand how to regulate your breathing and better control your mental and emotional responses to stressful circumstances. It helps you get through other demanding situations in your life with more ease and grace.

8.Meditation Makes You More Creative

Meditation allows you to think more flexibly. What should you do when life doesn’t go as planned? Instead of letting obstacles get in your way, you can come up with more creative solutions when your ways of thinking allow for flexibility.

When you’re stuck in a particular way of thinking, you don’t tend to move forward. The creative thinking that is encouraged by meditation helps you get through life with more ease and efficiency.

But what does being more productive really mean?

Before you trade in your three cups of coffee for a new meditation practice, stop to consider what productivity really means to you. Do you have to do so much laundry?

Most of us have way too much on our to-do lists, and the majority of what we hope to accomplish isn’t going to fulfill us or change our lives significantly.

Productivity doesn’t have to mean working more. Productivity doesn’t have to mean never taking breaks or never relaxing.

Productivity should be about using your mind efficiently and creatively in order to live your life in a more rewarding manner.

When you’re more mindful about the way you live your life, you will become more productive when necessary, allowing you to make better use of the time that you do have.

Is it really more time you want? Do you need to get so much more done, or do you just want to be more efficient and mindful in the way you live your life? If you’re doing it for the right reasons, you can turn meditation into a daily habit.

http://www.purposefairy.com/82496/8-ways-productive-meditation/

Zig Ziglar

I Am: Powerful Affirmations For Personal Transformation

“I AM are two of the most powerful words, for what you put after them shapes your reality.” ~ Unknown

The words we use to describe ourselves, our lives and the world we live in, have the power to bring us up or tear us down, to make us happy or unhappy. And these I am affirmations are meant to make you aware of how powerful your words are. They will help you understand how to use the power of I Am in a way that empowers and inspires you to be better and live a more happy, joyful and meaningful life.

Oprah Winfrey

Ellen Degeneres

8 Habits for Enjoying a Healthier Life 3 days ago by Audrey Throne

“Health is a state of complete harmony of the body, mind and spirit. When one is free from physical disabilities and mental distractions, the gates of the soul open.” – B.K.S. Iyengar
Often, human beings are found in the pursuit of happiness. We work 9 to 5 jobs to earn money to buy materialistic things we consider a source of our happiness, until something new or latest comes along.

And so the cycle continues. Unfortunately, what we overlook is often the most important thing for a happy and peaceful life. We often compromise our physical and mental health to run after a life and all its temptations.
Here are 8 habits for enjoying a healthier life and rebuild one of the most important relationship from your life: the one with yourself.

1. Love yourself

When you love yourself for what you are and what you are not, life becomes so much easier. Instead of comparing yourself with others for things that cannot be changed, learn to appreciate what you have and who you are.
This journey of acceptance may be challenging, but you will love every bit of it. Once the mind is at peace, it brings harmony to the body and soul. This is what health is all about. When you start loving yourself, you will feel the positive change in your attitude and it will boost your confidence. And slowly, but surely, change your life.

 2. Change your environment

Living in a healthy environment is what we all want, but sadly, everyone is not blessed enough to have this basic necessity. You can change things in your favor though.

• Keep your home and surroundings clean and hygienic.
• Plant lots of trees around you. If you are not into gardening, get the local Green Thumb Society to help. Greenery uplifts the mood and beautifies your surroundings.
• Dispose of trash the right way. Reuse what can be reused and recycle the rest.

3. Take good care of your body

Our body is nature’s gift to us and we must take very good care of it. Take proper care of your personal hygiene as it is essential for a healthy life. Make sure to take necessary steps in order to observe proper hygiene for your body.

 

 

 4. Take care of your physical health

Your physical health greatly affects the overall functioning of your body. In order to ensure that your body is working at its best, you need to take extra care of your physical health.

• Be physically active. Depending on your age and lifestyle, pick up a sport or any physical activity that suits you. It can be anything from a walk to an intense workout or a weight lifting session in the gym.
• Get yourself vaccinated.
• Protect yourself from harsh weather conditions, like too much sun or the extreme cold.
• Keep a check and record of your blood pressure, blood sugar level and cholesterol levels.

 5. Avoid commercial food

The food we eat has a great impact on us. If you want to stay healthy and live a long life, say no to commercial food.
Replace all ready-to-eat, prepared and comfort foods with healthy alternatives such as fresh fruits and vegetables, yogurt, oats, salads and fresh lean meat. Avoid processed and canned foods as they are full of harmful ingredients.
If you can, try to go for organic fruits and vegetables. They may be heavy on the pocket, but they are best for your health.

6. Say no to stress

Stress drains you of mental and physical strength. Avoid people and situations that stress you out and instead surround yourself with people who are positive and love you. Take necessary steps to alleviate stress levels. Organize yourself and make a priority list. Yoga and meditation are known to do wonders for stress alleviation. Take out time for yourself and practice yoga and meditation.

7. Learn from your mistakes

A golden rule for a healthy and happy life is; your mistakes should only be remembered as lessons and learnings. Do not feel guilty about the wrongs you did in the past. It is gone and feeling guilty cannot make it right. Feeling sad affects the brain and can cause depression, anxiety and several other serious mental disorders. Forgive, forget and move on.

8. Be positive

Positivity alters your life completely. It changes the way we think, the way we perceive things and the way we react to situations and people. Train your mind to think about the most positive aspect of a situation. It brings peace and happiness. It changes the attitude with which we meet others and leaves a positive impact on them. A healthy and peaceful mind promises a healthy life.

Sign

POSITIVE

How to Develop Mental Toughness: Lessons From 8 Titans -Tim Ferris

“We don’t rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training.”
― Archilochus
Mental toughness can take many forms: resilience against attack, calmness in the face of uncertainty, persistence through pain, or focus amidst chaos.
Below are eight lessons from eight of the toughest human beings I know.
All are taken from the hundreds of tips and tactics in Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers.

#1 – IF YOU WANT TO BE TOUGHER, BE TOUGHER.
(Jocko Willink, former Navy SEAL Commander)

“If you want to be tougher mentally, it is simple: Be tougher. Don’t meditate on it.”
TIM: These words of Jocko’s helped one listener—a drug addict—get sober after many failed attempts. The simple logic struck a chord: “Being tougher” was, more than anything, a decision to be tougher. It’s possible to immediately “be tougher,” starting with your next decision. Have trouble saying “no” to dessert? Be tougher. Make that your starting decision. Feeling winded? Take the stairs anyway. Ditto. It doesn’t matter how small or big you start. If you want to be tougher, be tougher.


 

#2. I WASN’T THERE TO COMPETE. I WAS THERE TO WIN.
(Arnold Schwarzenegger)  

TIM: In my interview with Arnold, I brought up a photo of him at age 19, just before he won his first big competition, Junior Mr. Europe. I asked, “Your face was so confident compared to every other competitor. Where did that confidence come from?” He replied:
“My confidence came from my vision. . . . I am a big believer that if you have a very clear vision of where you want to go, then the rest of it is much easier. Because you always know why you are training 5 hours a day, you always know why you are pushing and going through the pain barrier, and why you have to eat more, and why you have to struggle more, and why you have to be more disciplined… I felt that I could win it, and that was what I was there for. I wasn’t there to compete. I was there to win.”

 

#3 – PUSH BEYOND, SHARE PRIVATION, TACKLE FEAR.
(4-Star General Stanley McChrystal)

TIM: The following from Gen. McChyrstal was in response to “What are three tests or practices from the military that civilians could use to help develop mental toughness?”:
“The first is to push yourself harder than you believe you’re capable of. You’ll find new depth inside yourself. The second is to put yourself in groups who share difficulties, discomfort. We used to call it ‘shared privation.’ [Definition of privation: a state in which things essential for human well-being such as food and warmth are scarce or lacking.] You’ll find that when you have been through that kind of difficult environment, you feel more strongly about that which you’re committed to. And finally, create some fear and make individuals overcome it.”

#4 – PUT FEAR IN LINE.
(Caroline Paul, luger, firefighter, and more)

TIM: In the 1990s, Caroline illegally climbed the Golden Gate Bridge, rising to ~760 feet on thin cables. She’d mentioned “putting fear in line” to me, and I asked her to dig into the specifics.
“I am not against fear. I think fear is definitely important. It’s there to keep us safe. But I do feel like some people give it too much priority. It’s one of the many things that we use to assess a situation. I am pro-bravery. That’s my paradigm.
Fear is just one of many things that are going on. For instance, when we climbed the bridge, which was five of us deciding we wanted to walk up that cable in the middle of the night. Please don’t do that, but we did. Talk about fear—you’re walking on a cable where you have to put one foot in front of the other until you’re basically as high as a 70-story building with nothing below you and . . . two thin wires on either side.
It’s just a walk, technically. Really, nothing’s going to happen unless some earthquake or catastrophic gust of wind hits. You’re going to be fine as long as you keep your mental state intact. In those situations, I look at all the emotions I’m feeling, which are anticipation, exhilaration, focus, confidence, fun, and fear. Then I take fear and say, ‘Well, how much priority am I going to give this? I really want to do this.’ I put it where it belongs. It’s like brick laying or making a stone wall. You fit the pieces together.” 

#5 – IS THAT A DREAM OR A GOAL?
(Paul Levesque/Triple H, WWE superstar and executive)

“[Evander Holyfield] said that his coach at one point told him, something like his very first day, ‘You could be the next Muhammad Ali. Do you wanna do that?’ Evander said he had to ask his mom. He went home, he came back and said, ‘I wanna do that.’ The coach said, ‘Okay. Is that a dream or a goal? Because there’s a difference.’ “I’d never heard it said that way, but it stuck with me. So much so that I’ve said it to my kid now: ‘Is that a dream, or a goal? Because a dream is something you fantasize about that will probably never happen. A goal is something you set a plan for, work toward, and achieve. I always looked at my stuff that way. The people who were successful models to me were people who had structured goals and then put a plan in place to get to those things. I think that’s what impressed me about Arnold [Schwarzenegger]. It’s what impressed me about my father-in-law [Vince McMahon].”

#6 – PAIN TOLERANCE CAN BE THE FORCE MULTIPLIER
(Amelia Boone, 3x World’s Toughest Mudder champion)

“I’m not the strongest. I’m not the fastest. But I’m really good at suffering.”

7 – WHO DO YOU SURROUND YOURSELF WITH WHEN YOUR EGO FEELS THREATENED?
(Josh Waitzkin, chess prodigy, push hands world champion, first black belt under BJJ phenom Marcelo Garcia)

Back in the world of combat sports and Brazilian jiu-jitsu:
“It’s very interesting to observe who the top competitors pick out when they’re five rounds into the sparring sessions and they’re completely gassed. The ones who are on the steepest growth curve look for the hardest guy there—the one who might beat them up—while others look for someone they can take a break on.”

8 – THE MAGIC OF THE SINGLE DECISION
(Christopher Sommer, former men’s gymnastics national team coach)

TIM: We all get frustrated. I am particularly prone to frustration when I see little or no progress after several weeks of practicing something new. Despite Coach Sommer’s regular reminders about connective-tissue adaptations taking 200 to 210 days, after a few weeks of flailing with “straddle L extensions,” I was at my wits’ end. Even after the third workout, I had renamed them “frog spaz” in my workout journal because that’s what I resembled while doing them: a frog being electrocuted.
Each week, I sent Coach Sommer videos of my workouts via Dropbox. In my accompanying notes at one point, I expressed how discouraging it was to make zero tangible progress with this exercise. Below is his email response, which I immediately saved to Evernote to review often.
It’s all great, but I’ve bolded my favorite part.
“Dealing with the temporary frustration of not making progress is an integral part of the path towards excellence. In fact, it is essential and something that every single elite athlete has had to learn to deal with. If the pursuit of excellence was easy, everyone would do it. In fact, this impatience in dealing with frustration is the primary reason that most people fail to achieve their goals. Unreasonable expectations time-wise, resulting in unnecessary frustration, due to a perceived feeling of failure. Achieving the extraordinary is not a linear process.
The secret is to show up, do the work, and go home.
A blue collar work ethic married to indomitable will. It is literally that simple. Nothing interferes. Nothing can sway you from your purpose. Once the decision is made, simply refuse to budge.
Refuse to compromise.
And accept that quality long-term results require quality long-term focus. No emotion. No drama. No beating yourself up over small bumps in the road. Learn to enjoy and appreciate the process. This is especially important because you are going to spend far more time on the actual journey than with those all too brief moments of triumph at the end.
Certainly celebrate the moments of triumph when they occur. More importantly, learn from defeats when they happen. In fact, if you are not encountering defeat on a fairly regular basis, you are not trying hard enough. And absolutely refuse to accept less than your best.
Throw out a timeline. It will take what it takes.
If the commitment is to a long-term goal and not to a series of smaller intermediate goals, then only one decision needs to be made and adhered to. Clear, simple, straightforward. Much easier to maintain than having to make small decision after small decision to stay the course when dealing with each step along the way. This provides far too many opportunities to inadvertently drift from your chosen goal. The single decision is one of the most powerful tools in the toolbox.”

How to Start Over When Life Knocks You Down

When life knocks you down, it’s not because it wants you to suffer; it’s not because it wants you to feel the pain that comes from falling. When life knocks you down, it’s only because it wants you to free yourself of yourself – to let go of all attachments – to anything and everything that’s keeping you unaligned with Source and the Truth of who you are, and see Life as it really is, not as you perceive it to be.
When life knocks you down, it’s only because it wants you to remember that “Nothing in life is yours to keep—not your children, not your friends and family, not your lover, not your material possessions, not your youth and vitality, not your struggles (which is great news) or successes, not your body and not even your life. Everything in life is given to you for a short period of time, to enjoy, to learn from, to appreciate and to love, but never to keep.” ~ Luminita D. Saviuc, 15 Things You Should Give Up to Be Happy: An Inspiring Guide to Discovering Effortless Joy
This beautiful video is meant to help you understand the true meaning of falling and why there is always a reason to start over.

1 day ago by Luminita D. Saviuc

The Key to Wealth: Pay Yourself First

 “Don’t save what is left after spending, spend what is left after saving.” - Warren Buffett

Many people spend a lot of time trying to discover the key to wealth, or how to become rich.
In 1926, George Clason wrote a book called The Richest Man in Babylon — one of the greatest success classics of all time. It’s the fabled story of a man named Arkad, a simple scribe who convinces his client, a money lender, to teach him the secrets of money.
Becoming rich begins with a few simple rules...

Pay Yourself First

The first principle the money lender teaches Arkad is: “A part of all you earn must be yours to keep.”
He goes on to explain that by first putting aside at least 10% of his earnings — and making that money inaccessible for expenses — Arkad would see this amount build over time and, in turn, start earning money on its own.
Over an even longer time, it would grow into a lot of money, because of the power of compound interest.

Harness The Power of Compound Interest

If you’ve never heard that term before, compound interest is what happens when you earn interest on your savings, and -- when left in the savings account -- that interest begins to earn interest of its own. Given enough time, the earning power of that interest compounding on itself will eventually turn a small amount of money into a fortune.
Compound interest is one of the key reasons why paying yourself first – and starting early in life -- is so essential if you want to accumulate wealth. We’ll talk more about that in a second.

Learn How to Invest

Now, the world’s most aggressive savers pay themselves first and make investing money as central a part of their money management as they do paying their mortgage.
To get in the habit of saving some money every month, immediately take a predetermined percentage of your paycheck and put it in a savings account that you don’t allow yourself to touch. Keep building that account until you’ve saved enough to move it into a mutual fund or bond account or to invest it somewhere else.
Investing just 10% to 15% of your income will help you eventually amass a fortune. Pay yourself first, then live on what is left.
This will do two things:

1. It will force you to start building your fortune and
2. If you still want to buy more or do more, it will force you to find ways to earn more money to afford it.

Never Dip into Your Savings to Fund a Bigger Lifestyle
Never dip into your savings to fund your bigger lifestyle. You want your investments to grow to the point that you could live off of the compound interest that accumulates, if necessary. Only then will you be truly financially independent.

Start Paying Yourself First Today

Keeping this idea of paying yourself first in mind, I want to leave you with a bit of homework to complete after you’re done watching this video. Calculate what 10% of your income is, and commit to saving that much -- no matter what!
To hold yourself accountable, leave a comment below with the most important thing you could start saving for. Is it your retirement? The ability to eventually quit your job and start a charity? Or maybe you need financial independence in order to start a brand new career doing work that you’re passionate about. I’ll follow up with you to make sure you’re staying on track!
Paying yourself first doesn’t have to stop with money. Learn how self-improvement and learning will pay dividends in your life. By improving yourself, you’ll attract more and more success into your life. You can begin to improve yourself by beginning to include positive affirmations in your life. They are the foundation for all self-improvement and positive thinking.

Brian Tracey

9 Ways to Silence Self-Criticism and Embrace Self-Love

“I don’t know a perfect person. I only know flawed people who are still worth loving.” ~John Green
Do you ever wonder if that voice in your head is right?
Do you re-live events, scouring through every detail to look for places where you went wrong in your actions?
Do you ever walk away from a conversation with your inner voice ranting that you should have done better—that you should have said this or that instead?
That self-critical voice became a prominent friend of mine. I called it the gremlin. The gremlin leapt onto my shoulder after every conversation with a friend or acquaintance. Whispering in my ear in a snarky voice, repeating every sentence and telling me what I should’ve said instead.
The gremlin and I would have dinner together after a shopping trip and review how much I’d spent, critiquing what I should have left at the store. We would then scrutinize the meal I’d just eaten and have a dash of dessert, since I had already gone overboard. This would inevitably be followed by a vicious verbal attack on my body.
The worst part was that the gremlin played on my insecurities, exposed my weaknesses, and actually made me more critical of others (in an attempt to silence my criticism of myself).
I realized how detrimental a friend the gremlin was when I was diagnosed with depression and anxiety. During a group therapy exercise, I could not write down two people who I thought would have something good to say about me. I just sat there with tears from my ugly-cry falling in my lap. It robbed me of any joy in relationship with others and myself.
It was a devastating eye-opener.
Allowing the gremlin to run the show had eroded my self-love and ruined my self-esteem.
Self-criticism had dirtied my mind into thinking that nothing would ever go my way. I had nothing left inside that seemed admirable. All that I had experienced and achieved up until that point had no meaning for me.
I eventually managed to break it off with my self-critical voice and built unconditional self-love. But it took consistent practice in searching for my own valuable qualities.

 

These are some of the methods that worked for me:

1. Confront your own gremlin.

Confrontation is difficult, especially if it’s a part of yourself that you’re confronting.
But if you want to rid yourself of your gremlin, you have to do it.
How?
One of the first things I did was consciously examine every thought. I listened to the tone of my internal dialogue. I found that it was not a loving or supportive voice.
It was hard to recognize at first, but with practice I heard the distinct voice of my gremlin. I began to question its validity. Where its criticisms actually true? Was it taking things out of context?
I questioned the beliefs about myself that the gremlin had been whispering to me all those years. I realized I had taken many things out of context and my inner criticisms were extreme and punitive.
Would it surprise you if I told you it is actually very satisfying to call out your gremlin and put it on sabbatical? It is a relief to confront the unending criticism and listen for a more supportive voice. When you stop taking its criticisms to heart, you’ll finally open yourself to self-love.

2. Choose gentle observation.

This world is a competitive place and it’s easy to fall into the trap of scrutinizing your abilities. You have a lot invested and want to control the outcome of your experiences. This can create high expectations and disappointment when things do not run smoothly.
At one of my past employers if I made a mistake at work I would end up falling into the pattern of berating myself all day long. This accumulated until I no longer felt I did a good job, lowering my self-esteem.
Now I choose to gently observe my productivity and monitor my progress. If I make a mistake I correct it to the best of my ability and move on.
It is through repeated acknowledgement that your self-love is able to blossom. Create a habit of recognizing a kinder vision of yourself—one that is more humane.

3. Forgive yourself and then forgive yourself again.

We all make mistakes, but even tragic ones do not warrant withholding self-love. Self-forgiveness is an art that needs to be practiced and reinforced, especially when you’ve got a harsh internal self-critic.
My gremlin has berated me through the years about not being a dedicated parent due to my time spent on self-care. To prevent myself from slipping back into depression and anxiety, self-care has become my lifeline and a way to maintain good health. Occasionally I have to put it before my family so I may attend groups or self improvement classes.
My family feels the impact of it and when they protest, my self-critic whispers until I feel guilty.
So I forgive myself for the time I’ve spent away. I forgive myself for forgetting something important that they told me because I was preoccupied with keeping my mind quiet. I forgive myself for putting myself at the top of my priority list.
Forgiveness is a skill to be honed and perfected. The main benefit is freedom from the scorn of your inner critic. So forgive yourself daily.
Every night before you go to sleep, make some time in your bedtime ritual to forgive yourself for something, even if it’s just a small mistake or done out of necessity. Tell yourself it’s okay, that these things happen, and see if there is a way to improve the situation.

4. Expand your view.

Sometimes you only see what is in focus. But when you focus on something too closely, you miss all the beautiful scenery. A Monet painting looks like mere splotches if you scrutinize it closely. But when you look at it from a distance, its beauty is breathtaking.
In the past, whenever a friend hadn’t returned a call or were late for a night out, my gremlin would tell me they didn’t like me anymore. It would tell me it’s me and I was sliding down the popularity scale.
But this was never the case. Whenever I expanded the view, I realized my friends had their own lives keeping them busy and they missed me as much as I missed them. When we would finally get together we had a great time and I would experience all the love that was available to me.
Your inner critic will always focus on the negative possibilities and make everything your fault. But when you expand your view, you’ll see the world is a very intricate, complicated piece of art meant to be appreciated as a whole.

5. Let go of judgment.

Life unfolds and conversations evolve in the moment. It is when we look back with the benefit of hindsight that we judge ourselves for what was said and done. This habit is difficult to break.
Recently I had a conversation with my daughter. It really could have gone better, we ended up yelling, screaming, and crying. I let my emotions control my responses.
My gremlin started in and I immediately shut it down. I could have easily let it rage on with the judgments. I recognized that I could’ve done a better job of pausing and controlling my emotions.
When you recognize those moments in which you’re judging yourself, show yourself compassion. You didn’t know how that moment would develop. You were just doing the best you could.
It’s okay to think about what went wrong, but only in the spirit of improving yourself so that you don’t make the same mistakes.

6. Choose something different.

The inner critic often falls into certain thought patterns, and recognizing these patterns can help you develop different ones. A common phrase your inner critic may use, for example, are the words, “You always . . .”
My self-critic would tell me “You always, interrupt people when they are talking.”
It was true. I felt an inner excitement to share my experience when someone was talking with me and I would interrupt them. I started to purposefully pause and became a deep listener. It has given me a deeper connection to the people I encounter.
Listen for your inner critic’s distinct phrases; it’s a key time to evaluate the situation and try a different approach or reaction. This is probably one of the only times your inner critic is being helpful.
When you choose a different way to act or react, you hone your skills and gain confidence in making choices that are beneficial to yourself and others.

7. Remove the shackles.

Sometimes being chained to your self-critic becomes comfortable and keeps you in familiar surroundings. The voice tells you to stay put or you risk failure.
What part of you is afraid to try something new? The freedom to explore new opportunities can uncover talents you possess, build upon your strengths, and may even lead to a new career or hobby.
I benched my inner critic and started playing ice hockey at forty-three years old despite the fact I couldn’t skate at first. I gained new friends, improved my health, and learned some teamwork skills.
The next time you recognize that your self-critic is keeping you safe, sign up for that class you’ve been eyeing or do something epic. Call that crazy friend of yours who is always going skydiving, and give it a try. You may just find an activity you become passionate about.

8. Recognize yourself in others.

We can often see others’ strengths more clearly and forgive their mistakes more easily than our own. But the qualities you see in other people are in you as well. It’s called the mirror effect.
If you practice thinking kindly of and speaking kindly to others, it’s easier to recognize your common strengths.
For example, pick two people now. What strengths do you admire in them? What do you normally compliment them on? Make a list of those strengths. Where do you see them in yourself as well?
Optimize how you can rely on those strengths to help build more self-love.

9. Unwrap your imperfection like a gift.

Your gremlin has been sharing your imperfections with you for years. Acknowledge how those traits can work for you in your life.
I have always been obsessive to the point that it has prevented me from finishing projects and kept me up all hours of the night. Simple projects that someone else would complete as “good enough” would become epic projects exacting perfection for me.
My gremlin would tell me if I didn’t do something the right way I shouldn’t bother doing it at all.
But while this obsessiveness can be a curse, it can also be a blessing. You’ll never find me delivering sloppy work.
For instance, when I was a teenager, I had pleasantly surprised my parents when they had me sand the peeling bathroom ceiling and it came out as smooth as silk.
And as an adult I ran a large craft fair. I’d obsess over every detail for months, but this resulted in every fair going off without a hitch for the five years I helped.
No matter what perceived flaws you have, you are an extraordinary human being. When have these flaws actually been helpful, and when have they hindered you? Choose to work on two flaws that would vastly improve your life, and accept the others as unique personality traits.

Live free from Self-Criticism and Embrace Self-Love

Since I’ve been challenging my inner critic I no longer waste time putting myself down. Instead, I have developed a deep appreciation for my personal strengths and feel more confident. My depression is gone and my anxiety has subsided. My mind doesn’t race after every conversation and I feel a sense of peace most days.
You too can experience this kind of freedom.
It takes a simple awareness that will develop easily if you pick one or two of these methods and start to use them mindfully. Your skills at recognizing your self-critic will slowly build until you are not listening to it at all.
Give yourself permission to let that cantankerous voice go and replace it with a supportive, empowering recognition of your strengths.
Radiate so much love for yourself that the gremlin will be stunned into silence.

By Charlene Anestis